Agile Octopus (time of use tariff) customers can cook their Christmas dinner for free from 11am – 3pm

Unlocks the potential of smart meters and domestic energy to bring some Christmas cheer

On Christmas Day 2018, customers using Octopus Energy’s Agile Tariff will be able to cook their Christmas dinner for free as electricity will be dropped to 0p per KWh. The free energy initiative is thanks to a unique integration of real-time wholesale pricing, smart meter technology and Octopus Energy’s commitment to rethinking energy consumption.

Customers on the independent energy supplier’s Agile Tariff will get their energy for free from 11am to 3pm on December 25th 2018.

This festive gift from Octopus Energy is made possible by its unique use of dynamic pricing, which allows customers to benefit from the half-hourly energy pricing fluctuations, set daily at 4pm for the following 24 hours. Prices are tied to publicly published wholesale costs to ensure full transparency. Charges are then calculated for each customer using the half-hourly consumption data from a smart meter, ensuring accuracy.

This Christmas, Santa’s elves are going to tinker with the algorithmic pricing, giving 4 hours free electricity on Christmas Day – enough to roast a 14lb turkey (and some trimmings too).

Since launching in February 2018, the dynamic pricing technology has already helped Agile Octopus customers shift energy consumption from peak periods by 28%, to when energy is cheapest – and often greenest.

Research shows customers can save up to £188 a year compared to legacy standard variable tariffs – and £45 compared to Octopus Energy’s cheapest 12-month fixed tariffs. Earlier this month wholesale priced dropped below 0p and as a result, customers were actually paid to use energy.

The Agile tariff features an API (application programming interface), allowing customers to access dynamic pricing and use it to schedule smart devices, electric vehicles, and chargers to use energy while prices are lowest.

Greg Jackson, CEO of Octopus Energy, says:

“Smart tariffs will bring energy costs down by enabling customers to get cheap energy when there’s plenty of capacity in the system, and reduce demand at peak times.

With shops and offices closed on Christmas day, total demand for electricity will be quite low, so we thought we’d make Christmas dinner that little bit cheaper for customers on the Agile Tariff, with 4 hours of free electricity – enough to cook a 14lb turkey.

“Last week we were the first supplier to use smart meter capabilities to reward customers with plunge pricing when there was excess wind generation – quite literally paying people to use energy – and we’re proud to be trailblazers for this use of technology.

“Redistribution of energy load on the grid is essential for our sustainable future – we’d love for 2019 to be the year where other suppliers follow suit.”

Octopus’s Agile Tariff empowers thousands of customers to make smart decisions about the timing of their energy usage to potentially save hundreds of pounds each year. It incentivises customers to redistribute the load on the grid and adopt cleaner, greener, more sustainable energy. It is available to all Octopus customers with a remotely readable smart electricity meter installed in their home.

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